Demons brave hellish loss to `Dogs

Melbourne's AFL pre-season has turned ugly, with defender Clint Bartram reported and
three players including star forward Aaron Davey injured in a disappointing 38-point
loss to the Western Bulldogs in their final practice hitout.
Bartram will face the scrutiny of the match review panel for a front-on hit on
Bulldog Daniel Giansiracusa, for which he was reported in the third quarter of the
match at Casey Fields on Saturday.
To make the Demons' day worse, Davey, defender Daniel Bell and Ricky Petterd all
sustained injuries which could put them in doubt for round one.
Davey has a heel injury, and was clearly in much discomfort as he tore off his boot
before leaving the field assisted by two trainers.
Bell has a suspected broken thumb, while midfielder Petterd has a corked hip.
All three would be certain selections for round one if fit.
The report and injuries follow the club-imposed suspension of midfielder Colin
Sylvia for breaking a curfew during the week.
Adding a dismal exclamation mark was the Dees' final quarter fadeout in rainy
conditions in their 14.17 (101) to 10.3 (63) defeat.
With both sides near full strength, the Demons competed well with the Dogs for three
quarters before falling away completely in the final term.
The Dogs booted the only five goals of the quarter and held the Demons scoreless,
with Melbourne coach Dean Bailey admitting the performance wasn't good enough a
fortnight out from round one.
"The last quarter we really let ourselves down," Bailey said.
"We just need to get better with our skills. For three weeks we've shown improvement
in our kicking, but we didn't today."
Josh Hill kicked three goals for the Bulldogs, with Ryan Griffen, Brad Johnson and
the impressive Scott Higgins all booting two apiece.
Midfielder Daniel Cross shone brightest for the Dogs with 29 touches, while
Melbourne were best served by forward Brad Green who kicked three goals and gathered
26 possessions.
It was the Bulldogs' first success ahead of the 2009 season following losses to
Essendon, St Kilda and Sydney throughout the NAB Cup and NAB Challenge.
Bulldogs coach Rodney Eade felt his side had shown some good signs, though he said
forward Robert Murphy pulled up sore following the match.
Murphy and Brownlow Medallist Adam Cooney were among those given limited game time
by Eade, while injury-prone defender Tom Williams also gained a much-needed hitout.